1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to providing a quilting-aid device and method for use with a well-known way of making "two-color" squares for use in quilts. More particularly, this invention concerns quilting-aid devices and methods which provide a system whereby the quilt maker, in the making of such commonly used squares, is rescued from having to perform difficult calculations or reasoning in the measuring and stitching and cutting of such squares.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the prior art, it is a common practice in quilting to want to use diagonally-stitched square-shaped pieces (called "squares") made up of two right-angled triangle-shaped pieces, (i.e., each having one corner/angle of about 90 degrees and two corners/angles of about 45 degrees each), each triangle piece being made of cloth having a different pattern and/or color than the other. These squares, often called two-color squares, are desired in a size selected by the quilt maker. There are several common methods of efficiently making such two-color squares, a very common one of which is: laying out for cutting "large" square-shapes large enough in area to provide four two-color squares in the desired size (even considering stitching losses); superimposing flatly a pair of these large squares, each such large square having a different pattern and/or color than the other; stitching these superimposed large squares together along a "square" line located a measured "proper-stitching" distance from the outer boundary of the superimposed large squares; cutting through such stitched-together superimposed large squares along both diagonals of the superimposed large squares; and pulling open the unstitched corners of the resulting four superimposed right-angled triangles to obtain four (smaller) diagonally-stitched two-color squares.
Since the quilt maker knows only the final desired dimensions of the desired small two-color squares but does not know the dimensions of the large squares needed to begin the above-described method of making the small two-color squares, the quilt maker is faced with doing whatever reasoning and calculating is necessary to select a large-square dimension that will work. Many quilters who desire to make quilts using such above-described method to make two-color squares of their own selected dimension feel lost and incompetent to figure out a proper starting large-square size. This is understandable since, to perform the required reasoning and calculating normally takes an understanding of using either mathematical square roots or mathematical sines as well as the geometrical effects of the loss of final usable area due to stitching.
Thus, faced with this prior-art problem, many quilters restrict themselves only to using two-color square sizes for which they have corresponding large-square patterns or for which they can purchase sheets of patterns to press onto their cloth materials to tell them where to sew and where to cut to end up with a pattern-product-specified two-color square size. And so many quilters lose the desirable size flexibility, spend extra money, etc.